goosifer

If you click through Mr. Rebates, you will get a 5% rebate if you are purchasing online. link

Familiar with the Tompkins County Deer Management Focus Area? link January hunting near Ithaca. I have to believe this has been discussed somewhere on this board in years past, as far as the details, is it worth it, where to go, etc.

I just bought a .204 Ruger caliber rifle. As hunting deer with a rifle is not allowed in 9A, I was restricted to .22 or smaller during the deer season/any caliber non-deer season. I figured it will be good enough year round. What is the effective range of a shotgun for coyote hunting?

Gifts at the goosifer household are always interesting . . . This year's theme was hunting. My wife got me something I wanted: scent free shampoo, conditioner and toothpaste. (The scent-a-way liquid soap from the hunting aisle was killing my hair). My MIL got me a nutcracker? My stepson got me a salt and pepper shaker @@

Congratulations on your engagement!

Thanks, Doc. The skidsteer with brush hog attachment does just fine, up to trees 1-1/2"+ in diameter. It is interesting how in some parts of the property, the paths cut the prior year were completely grown in with new vegetation, such that you couldn't immediately tell that that's where the path was, and in other parts of the property, the paths had minimal new vegetation. I guess it depends on what is growing in the immediate area of the area cut? Anyway, brushhogging is the one part I have covered. It's the tilling and or plowing piece of the puzzle I will need to work on. For spraying and seeding, i figure I can use my UTV. One question related to brush hogging: Once I have brush cut an area, should I use a bucket to push the cuttins off the soil, or just leave it there as "mulch"?

wolc123, how large were your corn plots?

Thanks for the info, sailinghudson25. A lot for me to digest. I will have to reread your post more carefully. good news I have an RTV900 and a push brush mower (although I will just use the skidsteer with the brush hog attachment).

Anyone care to opine on if either of these would work for tilling/plowing purposes? Finding them to rent is a whole other matter. link link

wolc123, thank you for taking the time to write that out for me. You have given me a great framework to work with. I am really hoping to find an alternative to using Roundup. (I know, I know, that is a huge topic unto itself.)

Thanks for the info GCZ. I will put more effort into finding tiller attachments for the skidsteer. How did you power you single bottom plow? Any chance you could send me a link to a picture of one?

I should have mentioned that the land is former agricultural fields that have grown wild for over five years. Some areas have thick "bushes" that have 1/2" to 1" thick branches up to 8' high. Other areas have red bushes with thorns on them. So for at least the first go around, after brush cutting, I am pretty sure I will need to disc, turnover and or till the soil. (I am not up to speed on farming lingo, so forgive me if those are all the same thing.) I've added some trail cam pics to give you a better idea of the current condition of the fields.

I plan on doing 2 to 4 acres of food plots for the first time next year. I have a lot of research I need to do, but at this point I do know I will need some equipment to make it happen. I am hoping I can rent the equipment and attachments I need, or maybe find a nearby farmer I can pay to do it. Two pieces of equipment I do have are a UTV (Kubota RTV900) and a skidsteer (Volvo MC80 86 hp). I don't have a tractor. I know I can rent a brush hog attachment for the skidsteer to clear the overgrown fields. But as far as discing/turning the soil, planting the seeds, embedding the seeds to proper depth, and spraying weed killer, could anyone recommend a way to get this done with particular skidsteer or UTV attachments? I know they sell food plot equipment that can be pulled by the UTV, but I am under the impression that those are pricy and might be too dinky for 2-4 acres. I have yet to come across any "farming" skidsteer attachments. So, anyway to get this done with an UTV and skidsteer, or should I add buying or renting a tractor to the list? TIA.

Grow, could you list some of your catalog places, especially if they have fruit and nut trees good for NYS? I looked at that one seed company you mentioned in another thread recently.

I broke my ramrod at the range two years ago trying to site in a scope that turned out to be defective. This year I bought a CVA lifetime range rod for $30. Solid heavy brass. Well worth it. Now I just use the ramrod if I need to reload in the field

which one did you get? I have an older one in B&W non-touchscreen.

Jeremy, I am in the same boat you are: looking to do food plots in Niagara County for the first time next year. I have access to a skid steer and can rent the brush hog attachment to clear fields. I need to work on getting access or renting equipment to turn spray and seed the soil. Maybe we can exchange information as we get up to speed on this over the next several months.

Good news. I found the blind. It was just 40 yards away covered in snow. I thought for sure it had made it to Lake Ontario. I also am going to get my range finder repaired. With a bit of luck, it might just cost me the postage to send it to Leupold. We'll see.

good luck, be safe and keep warm to everyone out hunting today.

I've thought about the idea of a hunting club doing a swap meet for gear and clothing that got "upgraded". I could probably fill a table just with my stuff. I think we could add a glove and mitten matchmaking table to the swap meet. Funny, I've actually been wearing two different gloves when I hunt lately. A regular one for gun hand and a no fingertips one for texting hand. I got tired of taking off and putting back on my right glove.

Last year for crossbow I would discharge into the ground nearby. Well, after losing or ruining 4 bolts, I got wise and this year I always brought my discharge bag. I guess I lost one bolt this year when it broke after hitting the deer I got. A hunting buddy suggested I upgrade my pullup ropes to nice thick ones (3/8" IIRC) from harborfreight. I'm using 1/8" rated rope now which can get slippery, I must admit.

I was doing well this year until today. Then I realized the blind I had set up last week was nowhere to be found (the chair and gear that was in the blind was still there) I used the smooth stakes that came with the tent, and clearly they did not hold up to the 25+ mph winds we had the other day. I also dropped my very nice Leupold range finder and cracked the metal face plate. It still works, though. I swear, this was the only time that I did not put it back in its case before walking out. When I was putting stuff into the truck, it fell and hit the pavement. Well, the cost of doing business, I guess. I made out much better than last year. Last year, I knocked over my scoped shotgun from my 16' ladder stand on opening day. Amazingly, Mossberg fixed it under warranty. I had bent the cantilever barrel, and messed up some other stuff. (Thanks, Mossberg.) So, lose or break anything noteworthy in the field this year?

Well my 2016 deer hunting season ended with a whimper instead of a bang. I "think" I saw one deer 200 yards away close to the road, but could not locate in my range finder, so I think it may have been a deermirage. Sat in the cold for a total of about 7 hours. It was a good test of my "very cold" gear. My head and face held up surprisingly well. Feet and body did OK. My weak spot was my hands. I don't like to wear bulky gloves. I had on thin neoprene gloves, hand warmers in my pockets and a muff warmer. As long as I kept my hands in my pockets or muff with the hand warmers, I was OK. When the sun came out in the afternoon, although only about 20 degrees, there were a ton of orange-chested birds swooping around eating berries and/or wild grapes. The field was much more alive than you would expect on such a cold day. Well, tomorrow I will round up the cameras and seat cushions, and put the UTV in storage. As a Cubs fan in my youth, all i can say is "wait till next year".

I will be going out tomorrow morning. Forecast is 15 degrees, 3 degrees wind chill. We'll see how long I last.

I was just looking at the website for "kamik" boots which are sold on Amazon. They sound amazing, but only come in a medium (EE, I believe) width. Worth taking a look at, I would say.